Henry V as a Leadership Model for Organizational Change

Introduction

In Chapter 9 of Noel Tichy's The Leadership Engine, the author describes leaders as protagonists in a drama. Dramatic characters from film and literature therefore serve as apt role models for future leaders interested in managing change and driving their organizations toward success. The film Henry V, relatively faithful to Shakespeare's play, reveals the qualities of an effective leader through its titular hero. Based on the real-life King of England, Henry V depicts a leader who embodies many of the qualities that Tichy deems important for developing a leadership engine: a learning organization that inculcates values and ethics into its mission, vision, and culture.

Henry V illustrates the importance of teaching, risk-taking, and relentless energy as core leadership traits. Furthermore, the film depicts a leader adept at learning from the past and communicating a clear and comprehensive vision for change.

Problem Statement

Many organizations suffer leadership crises during critical times of change. Effective change management methods are needed to successfully steer an organization toward its ultimate goals. In many cases, organizations fail at successful change when they neglect the power of social identity as either a means of radically transforming organizational culture to match future goals or as a major impediment to change (Slater, Evans, & Turner, 2015). If leaders expect successful change management, they need a plan by which followers can envision themselves in a new role or identity. Changes to organizational culture are inevitable, as are the daily tasks and processes that had once defined the organization, its different departments, and its individual members.

Moreover, effective change management can help organizations develop new climates of trust, accountability, and social responsibility (Sutherland, 2017). When leaders focus on values and principles, they can help followers see the big-picture issues and encourage passionate commitment and engagement. When organizations are stymied by bureaucratic or otherwise restrictive cultures and structures, leaders are systematically prevented from developing transformational styles that can empower employees and inspire followers to contribute to the fulfillment of collective objectives (Van der Voet, 2014). Leaders genuinely interested in contributing to organizational growth and effective change management can maximize performance through the application of evidence-based principles—many of which are aptly demonstrated in the film Henry V.

Background

While King Henry V is by no means a flawless leader—and few, if any, are—the character demonstrates a remarkable ability to inspire followers to buy into his vision for England as a regional power. Although he pursues war, with all the death and destruction it entails, Henry V motivates his countrymen through effective communication and an almost transformational leadership style. The film version directed by and starring Kenneth Branagh focuses considerable attention on several outstanding elements of the king's leadership: his penchant for teaching through both example and words, and his willingness to take risks.

King Henry also communicates a vision for a stronger, more powerful England to those who might otherwise scoff at the idea of war with France. His infectious high energy helps motivate those around him to take action, particularly his immediate team of confidants and advisors. In the end, King Henry succeeds in his goal—a goal that benefits his followers as much as himself through a promise of peace and reconciliation. Drawing on an extensive history in the relationship between England and France, King Henry makes his decisions not with reckless haste but with decisive action. The new era of Franco-Anglo political alliance proves significant for both countries, demonstrating Henry to be an adept transformational leader and driver of organizational change.

Solutions and Recommendations

Based on the film Henry V, leaders intending to guide their organizations through a tremendous crisis need to draw on several interrelated leadership strategies. Those strategies include the importance of teaching and learning, capitalizing on personal experiences, keeping the vision relevant to followers, maintaining high levels of energy, and remaining decisive and willing to take risks. At key moments in the film, Henry V executes each of these strategies while also exhibiting transformational leadership traits.

Conclusion

Great leaders like Henry V are future-focused, yet grounded in the actionable steps needed to inspire trust in the team. Applied to any model of organizational change or crisis, the example of King Henry V from the Kenneth Branagh film of the same name reveals an abundance of workable lessons for leaders. Strong leaders know their own strengths, impart their wisdom through teaching and learning opportunities, are never egotistical, and know when to step back (Tichy, 2007). The film concludes with Henry still serving his country as King, now allied with France through military action and marriage. Henry successfully ushers in a new era for England because of his transformational leadership style and his determination to evoke positive organizational and cultural change.

References

Branagh, K. (1989). Henry V [Feature film].

Slater, M. J., Evans, A. L., & Turner, M. J. (2015). Implementing a social identity approach for effective change management. Journal of Change Management, 16(1), 18–37.

Sutherland, I. E. (2017). Learning and growing: Trust, leadership, and response to crisis. Journal of Educational Administration, 55(1), 2–17.

Tichy, N. M. (2007). The Leadership Engine. Harper Business/Pritchett.

Van der Voet, J. (2014). The effectiveness and specificity of change management in a public organization: Transformational leadership and a bureaucratic organizational structure. European Management Journal, 32(3), 373–382.